B. Jayant Baliga

B. Jayant Baliga is an Indian electrical engineer best known for his work in power semiconductor devices, and particularly invention of the insulated gate bipolar transistor. Scientific American magazine included him among the 'Eight Heroes of the Semiconductor Revolution' when commemorating the 50th anniversary of the invention of the transistor.[1] Baliga grew up in a small village called Jalahalli near Bangalore, India. His father is a former head of Bharat Electronics Limited.[2] He received his B.Tech in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, in 1969, and his MS (1971) and PhD (1974) in Electrical Engineering from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

He worked 15 years at the General Electric Research and Development Center in Schenectady, New York, then joined North Carolina State University in 1988 as a Full Professor. He was promoted to Distinguished University Professor in 1997.[2] His invention insulated gate bipolar transistor that combines sciences from two streams Electronics engineering and Electrical engineering. This has resulted in cost savings of over $15 trillion for consumers, and is forming a basis for smart grid.[2] Baliga then worked in academic field. He also founded three companies that made products based on semiconductor technologies.[2]

Baliga is a Member of the National Academy of Engineering (2000) and the European Academy of Sciences (2005), as well as an IEEE Fellow (1983).[3] He received the 1991 IEEE Newell Award, 1993 IEEE Morris N. Liebmann Memorial Award, 1998 IEEE J J Ebers Award, and 1999 IEEE Lamme Medal,[4] and holds more than 100 U.S. patents. In 2010 he was awarded National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the highest award for an engineer in USA by US President Barack Obama.[2][5] In 2014, he was awarded the IEEE Medal of Honor, “For the invention, implementation, and commercialization of power semiconductor devices with widespread benefits to society.” [6]

References

  1. ↑ Dr. Jayant Baliga - Primary Faculty - Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Jayant Baliga's invention is a power saver, Shishir Prasad, Forbes India, Feb 27, 2012
  3. ↑ "Fellow Class of 1983". IEEE. Retrieved 2012-01-25.
  4. ↑ "IEEE Lamme Medal Recipients". IEEE. Retrieved 2012-01-25.
  5. ↑ President Obama Honors Nation’s Top Scientists and Innovators, September 27, 2011, The White House, Office of the Press Secretary, whitehouse.gov
  6. ↑ "IEEE 2014 Medals and Awards Recipients". IEEE. Retrieved 2014-02-14.

Further reading